Best of the Best: 2014 Photographer of the Year

For 2014 we wanted to do something special to remember and commemorate all of the amazing rides and people that we were fortunate enough to capture and work with for the inaugural year of Slam’d Magazine. Looking back on our first year, it’s quite amazing to see the plethora of high-quality rides and photos from around the globe that we were able to create and share, and we couldn’t do it without our ultra-talented support staff. When we first set out to bring you a digital magazine chock full of all of the baddest rides worldwide, regardless of genre, we certainly had our work cut out for us, but with a well laid plan and a world-class team we exceeded even our own expectations!

The four categories our staff chose for the 2014 End of the Year (EOTY) Slam’d Mag awards were, Truck of the Year, Car of the Year, Rod & Custom of the Year, and Show of the Year. We also had a vote to honor our staff Photographers and chose a Slam’dPhotographer of the Year (The countdown of Top 14 Photos from 2014 can be seen HERE). Johnny O was almost unanimously selected as this year’s “Photographer of the Year” and he certainly deserved it and truly needs no further introduction. Here’s what our Slam’d Mag staff had to say:

Photographer of the Year

It is with great pleasure that we present the Slam’d Mag 2014 Photographer of the Year award to Johnny O. I’m lucky enough to call John O’Neill by many names; mentor, teacher, and friend. When I began my career in automotive publishing back at McMullen Argus more than a decade ago now, John was the photographer/editor that took me under his wing and taught me how to shoot and navigate the crazy waters of automotive journalism. More important than that however, we shared some amazing adventures around the globe and built a lifetime of memories, all because we share a passion not just for photography and art – but also a common bond in love with all things low. Each and every one of John’s photos tells a unique story and each shoot is an inspiration and the backbone of the high-quality content that Slam’d Magazine is built on. Stay tuned for what we have in store for 2015!

Johnny O is truly an inspiration to all automotive photographers. Down to earth, amazing to work with, and extremely talented, there’s no one better on our team to receive the 2014 Photographer of the Year award! Congrats John, looking forward to working with you and learning more in the coming year.

Johnny O is by far one of my favorite automotive photographers out and I have followed him for quite some time now. Amazing work and an eye for detail that is truly unmatched. A huge inspiration to myself as a new comer into the photography world, John captures each vehicle in what seems to be it’s “natural habitat” bringing to life and telling the story of each car he shoots. Making it look easy, even though we all know it really isn’t – that’s the true sign of a pro!

I have known John for a long time but it wasn’t until we started doing some work together that I really got to know him on a more personal level. We would go out and scout film locations or go cover an event and my photos compared to his would always suck, even if we shot at the same time and same location. He has taught me a lot in the last few years and now my photos don’t suck as bad, so I definitely would like thank him for that. Congrats on all your success bud and can’t wait to see what the future holds!

Johnny O is a huge inspiration to automotive photographers around the globe. He is by far one of the best in the industry, and we are very fortunate to have him on the Slam’d Mag team and work alongside such talent. Hopefully some day soon I’ll have the chance to spend a day shooting side by side with him, congrats John – well deserved!

I’ve followed Johnny O’s photography for many years now. He actually wrote a quick how-to about doing show coverage photography a long time back in Sport Truck that helped me understand some of the camera settings when I was just getting into the DSLR game. If you’ve seen his work (which obviously you have if you’re reading this), you can tell he’s definitely a master of his craft. My favorites are his SEMA shoots out in the desert, as the whole atmosphere of the shots are simply breathtaking!

Every time I see one of John’s photos I’m instantly blown away. He is able to perfectly capture the mood in everything that he does. As with all great photos, he’s not simply taking a picture to show you a car or truck, he is telling a unique story of how that vehicle came to be. John is definitely an inspiration to all of us here at Slam’d and I look forward to working with him more!

Johnny O not behind the lens is like basketball without Michael Jordan. He is one of the most talented photographers I’ve ever had the pleasure of being around and I’m proud to call him a team member and learn from him. If you thought that 2014 was awesome just wait to see what Johnny O has in store for us all in 2015!

It’s great to work with other like-minded individuals, especially with the unique and talented mix that we have here at Slam’d Mag. We have some great photographers, writers, and contributors here and I’m proud to be a part of such an awesome team. It’s not surprising that Johnny O was chosen as Photographer of the Year as John has the ability to adapt to any scenario he is put into. Some of us are location photographers, natural light photographers, and some just like shooting in a studio setting, but Johnny O does them all, and he does it quite well! His photos inspire me to continue to learn the craft and to try putting myself in different scenarios to continue to grow. Challenge accepted – 2015 is going to be an awesome year here at Slam’d!

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